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ask more questions.

So I really hate small talk. I just get very tired, very quickly, of asking about mundane things when I meet people. I fully understand and can almost bring myself to accept that it isn’t appropriate to really get into the gritty pieces of peoples’ lives right off the bat, but it doesn’t stop me from wishing that small talk wasn’t the initial go to for conversation.

With that said, I love to ask questions. The group of high school girls I’ve been walking with for the past three and a half years often joke around that asking questions is my spiritual gift. Not so sure on the validity of that statement, but inquiry is definitely a large part of my life. Not in a gossipy way, by any means. More so in an interested-in-what-makes-you-tick-and-wanting-to-learn-from-you-and-see-the-world-in-a-brand-new-way sort of way. In a way that points me to Jesus because I am so in awe of the stories He writes in peoples’ lives.

I ran across this website called Thought Questions that is epic. It is incredible. It is a collection of beautiful questions that cut to the core of who we are. And I love it! I want to ask and hear answers to some of these questions. I want to know and be known. I love the authenticity of it, the possibility of learning about pieces of peoples’ lives that are little valued or heard.

So let’s all just ask more questions! Let’s care about people more. Let’s choose that richness, that beauty, that hope, instead of questions that result in answers like “I’m doing fine.”

With that, here are 95 questions that could change a life – ask yourself, ask your family and friends, ask a stranger you bump into on the street!Just ask. You will grow. You will learn. You will be so blessed.

In one sentence, who are you?

Why do you matter?

What is your life motto?

What’s something you have that everyone wants?

What is missing in your life?

What’s been on your mind most lately?

What do you need most right now?

What does the child inside you long for?

What is one thing right now that you are totally sure of?

What’s been bothering you lately?

What are you scared of?

What has fear of failure stopped you from doing?

What will you never give up on?

What do you want to remember forever?

What makes you feel secure?

Which activities make you lose track of time?

What’s the most difficult decision you’ve ever made?

What’s the best decision you’ve ever made?

What are you most grateful for?

What is worth the pain?

In order of importance, how would you rank: happiness, money, love,health, fame?

What is something you’ve always wanted, but don’t yet have?

What was the most defining moment in your life during this past year?

What’s the number one change you need to make in your life in the next twelve months?

What’s the number one thing you want to achieve in the next five years?

What is the biggest motivator in your life right now?

What will you never do?

What’s something you said you’d never do, but have since done?

What’s something new you recently learned about yourself?

What do you sometimes pretend to understand that you really do not?

In one sentence, what do you wish for your future self?

What worries you most about the future?

When you look into the past, what do you miss most?

What’s something from the past that you don’t miss at all?

What recently reminded you of how fast time flies?

What is the biggest challenge you face right now?

In one word, how would you describe your personality?

What never fails to frustrate you?

What are you known for by your friends and family?

What’s something most people don’t know about you?

What’s a common misconception people have about you?

What’s something a lot of people do that you disagree with?

What’s a belief you hold with which many people disagree?

What’s something that’s harder for you than it is for most people?

What are the top three qualities you look for in a friend?

If you had a friend who spoke to you in the same way that you sometimes speak to yourself, how long would you allow that person to be your friend?

When you think of ‘home,’ what, specifically, do you think of?

What’s the most valuable thing you own?

If you had to move 3000 miles away, what would you miss most?

Who are your closest friends and why?

What would make you smile right now?

What do you do when nothing else seems to make you happy?

What do you wish did not exist in your life?

What should you avoid to improve your life?

What is something you would hate to go without for a day?

What’s the biggest lie you once believed was true?

What’s something bad that happened to you that made you stronger?

What’s something nobody could ever steal from you?

What’s something you disliked when you were younger that you truly enjoy today?

What are you glad you quit?

What do you need to spend more time doing?

What are you naturally good at?

What have you been counting or keeping track of recently?

What has the little voice inside your head been saying lately?

What’s something you should always be careful with?

What should always be taken seriously?

What should never be taken seriously?

What are three things you can’t get enough of?

What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you?

What fascinates you?

What’s the difference between being alive and truly living?

What’s something you would do every day if you could?

At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive?

Which is worse, failing or never trying?

What makes you feel incomplete?

When did you experience a major turning point in your life?

What or who do you wish you lived closer to?

If you had the opportunity to get a message across to a large group of people, what would your message be?

What’s something you know you can count on?

What makes you feel comfortable?

What’s something about you that has never changed?

What will be different about your life in exactly one year?

What mistakes do you make over and over again?

What do you have a hard time saying “no” to?

Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?